A Chance Happenstance
by Master-Chef64
Summary: Ko'shrai, a young man from the Second Empire under King Gronald, takes an opportunity to visit his cousin via the new ironclad airship. What happens on this fateful voyage changes him in ironically only 3 ways. Rated M for sexuality language and violence.
1. Chapter 1

"Upon the stone table He awaits.

Waiting for the end of his wide-awake nightmare.

He stands before his enemy,

Watching his burning flesh drip away.

Leaving a husk of his former self

Forever branded in pain."

Ko'shrai looked back one last time before boarding the monolithic airship. He had no regrets for what he had done. Showing the ticket to the garbed man at the door, he was ushered into the vessel, and shown to his private quarters. This was a first experience to Ko'shrai, travelling by air. This day was also a first for everyone else, as today was the day the first ironclad airship was in service. Rumors were going around that the royal family themselves were embarking on this maiden voyage as well, but Ko'shrai didn't bother to make anything of it.

"As long as this giant hulk doesn't kill me I'm all right with it." He told a room serviceman as he walked down the hallway. Heading towards the bar, he ordered a dry whisky. Looking up at the telegraph screen, Ko'shrai noticed out of the corner of his eye a lot of fancifully-dressed men surrounding an older character. Believing the rumor to be true, he quickly shuffled himself out of the way of the oncoming troupe, allowing the monarch to choose his spot.

"Hmm, I believe I'll have some red wine, sir." The Great King Granold told the bartender contently.

"Yes, my lord." The bartender replied humbly, seeking his rack for the finest red wine. Ko'shrai knew enough politics of this region to know not to stare at a member of the royal family, but he couldn't help but glance every now and then. King Granold noticed this, and cheerfully turned around to face this inquisitive figure.

"Ah yes, I do believe you were sitting here before I entered, is that correct?" The King asked Ko'shrai in a very unkingly fashion.

"Um, uh yes, my lord, but I won't be needing to sit any time soon." Ko'shrai said cautiously, as to not offend the King, especially since he was near a window.

"Oh nonsense! You come over here and sit. Besides, it's been a while since I've had a conversation with someone who wasn't a bloodsucking bureaucrat." King Granold confided to him, "Please, tell me, what do you truly think of my methodology of running this kingdom?"

Ko'shrai walked up slowly to the King, surrounded by his royal guard. They initially closed together, but a tap on the shoulder from the King's hand rectified this, and the young man joined his ruler in a very unlikely scenario.

"Well sir, if you don't mind me being frank," Ko'shrai started, "You're source of revenue, albeit lucrative, is very ineffective in the long run. You're going to need to search for other sources to keep the economy as robust as it is right now. If I might suggest something, there is an island kingdom not far from here, about 2,000 knots. You probably know it as the Galat Archipelago. Now they have a lot of abundant resources that they find no use for, as their economy isn't focused entirely on advancement as it is on culture. If you can provide them with assurances of partnership, as in help in local defence and stability, I'm sure they would be more than happy to allow you to 'relieve' them of these excess resources."

"You, my boy, are the reason that I still live." The old King said heartily, "It's people like you, who understand just what it takes to run a kingdom, that give me hope that our borders will not fall when I do. Come walk with me, I feel the need to discuss something with you, in private."

The two walked down the hall into a private corner of the airship. The giant metal beast had already entered the sky, and a sudden burst of turbulence reminded everyone of its presence. Upon reaching the King's private quarters, Granold ordered all of his guards outside of his room, leaving him, Ko'shrai, the King's daughter Verja, and the King's royal champion, Sir Frederick of Goethinbuerg. Ko'shrai bowed to what he felt was an appropriate extent without seeming outlandish, and proceeded to assume a military stance in front of a now grave-looking old man. It seemed that an air of death and despair had fallen upon the room, and Ko'shrai knew that he had gotten himself into something a lot bigger than he had planned.

'I only wanted to see my cousin in Gyliad...' he thought to himself as the King began to speak.

"Frederick, Verja, I'm glad you two are here to hear this." King Granold said solemnly, "This young man here is named Ko'shrai. He is the only outsider on this airship that I can trust fully, as should you two."

'How did he know all that?!' Ko'shrai thought to himself, but not revealing his alarmed state physically.

"I am getting old, Verja. I do not see myself living to see the turn of the next decade." the King continued, "As you know you will take my place as the rightful heir, whether you are married or not. The reason I asked for you, Frederick, and you, Ko'shrai, is because in these times, a King needs 3 separate witnesses to a testament. I have reason to believe that my life is threatened on this flight, and I do not expect to live either. Now do not cry, Verja, or seek to change fate, Frederick. All I ask is that do what you feel is necessary to lead the Kingdom in my absence. As for you, Ko'shrai, I have something to give you."

The King pulled out a stone with a clear jewel embedded within it, it was very light and appeared to glow slightly. Ko'shrai put the strange rock into his satchel, revealing one of his blades and his sidearm.

"That stone is the future of our Kingdom. I know it sounds a tad cliche'd considering it came from an age-old myth, but it is tradition nonetheless, and you alone have arguably the hardest task amongst the three of you. Now my only hope is that..."

A deafening crack erupted from beyond the doors of the King's private section, and a few slumping bodies could be heard just outside the doors themselves.

"What was that?!" Verja said, her voice quavering with fear.

"My lady, I do believe your father's assassins have come." Ko'shrai said, pulling back the matchlock on his gun.


	2. Chapter 2

As the door blew open, Ko'shrai wasted no time in assumptions. In one fluid motion, he pulled out his hand-rifle and fired it at whatever was coming through the opening. Three garbed figures came through after the shot, one of them falling instantly, holding their side. The other two quickly engaged Ko'shrai and Frederick. Frederick faired the better of the two, managing to pull out his longsword out to meet his opponent with a strong parry. Ko'shrai, however, failed to do much more than prepare his next shot when the second assassin was upon him. A dagger into his shoulder confirmed the worst, as an intense pain shot up into his neck. Involuntarily retracting his left arm, he fired one last shot blindly before dropping his gun and launching his elbow out at the assailant.

"Gah!" a feminine cry came out from Ko'shrai's opponent as they fell back, clucthing their own arm. Blood came seeping through the tan cloth. Grabbing his arm, the assassin went to his fallen comrade and put a finger to their neck before pulling out a long, slender blade.

Unbeknownst to the Frederick, Gronald, Verja, or Ko'shrai, a fire was ensuing on the other side of the airship, most likely a distraction while the three assassin's took the royal quarters.

Frederick had gained the upper hand on his opponent by this time, backing him into a corner with, as Ko'shrai affectionately called it, his big-ass member. However, right as Frederick was to deal the killing blow, the assailant disappeared in a puff of smoke, reappearing next to the king, who had by this time backed away from the action, wielding a weapon of his own. The assassin quickly subdued the King, holding him at dagger-point.

"Alright nobody move!" the assassin yelled out, confirming his masculinity, "I will kill him if need be."

"No!" the other assassin yelled out, "We need him ALIVE." By this time, smoke was starting to rise into the room, and explosions started erupting without any sense of rhythm.

Frederick and Ko'Shrai quickly doubled back to each other, contemplating an all-out assault on the two. Upon close inspection of the smaller-framed combatant, Ko'shrai noticed that their voice wasn't the only feminine trait about them.

"Do we now?" the taller one said rhetorically, before uttering a group of words under his breath. Before anyone knew what was going on, a stone literally exploded from deep within the triangle of flesh between King Granold's shoulder and neck.

"No!" both Verja and the now-assumed female assassin yelled out, watching as royal blood started to pool onto Gronald's cloak. His bejeweled sword fell with a thunderous clap that was heard above the ensuing chaos around them.

"All we need," The male continued, putting a vial into the wound, "is this". He retracted the glass cylander, now a deep red from its contents. Frederick took no time flailing forward, as if to avenge the dying king in his last moments. The leader quickly re-engaged the royal knight, but not before passing the vial to to female, still somewhat in shock over what occurred. She quickly drew her blade, looking at Ko'shrai with eyes that seemed to be filled with both terror and loyalty. She lunged at him with both hands on the relatively small hilt, but this time Ko'shrai was prepared. In a seemingly overblown fashion, he reared back and literally punched the blade aside. What the assassin didn't know was that Ko'shrai, during the confusion earlier, had equipped a special gauntlet that acts as a boxing glove of sorts. Shards of metal flew everywhere as the steel blade met what appeared to be a sort of tempered obsidian. The glove gave off a harmonious hum when the sword made contact, confirming its magical properties. The female assassin took no chances after this incident, and bolted through the now burning door frame. Ko'shrai grabbed his gun off of the floor and followed the assassin, going through what he thought was the entire airship before catching her at a flight of stairs.

"What happened back there?" He said to her, grabbing at her arm. She kicked him near the kidneys and continued her run up the stairs. After a few precious seconds recovering, Ko'shrai followed suit, slowly closing the distance between her. He ran through the oncoming exit to find himself hundreds of feet upon a single spire, the rest of the airship now a great ball of fire.

"The king wasn't supposed to die." The assassin told Ko'shrai, still holding her damaged weapon, "But I can't let you take this, it's vital to the prophecy." She lunged at him one last time, but not before Ko'shrai pointed his gun at her head.

"Now you know I can't let you do this." Ko'shrai said while she stopped, "Just hand it over, unless you want to risk your life."

"...I'll take my chances..." The assassin concluded.

What happened next seemed like an eternity of struggle. Blow after blow was given and received on both sides. Ko'shrai took a brawler stance to his technique, whilst the assassin took a more acrobatic approach to her attacks. All around them, flames were shooting upwards while the random munitions boxes exploded, causing debris to fly everywhere. As far as either could tell, they were in a mountainous desert at around sunset, when the airship started to pick up speed. Ko'shrai used this to his advantage to quickly lunge a hefty slug into the assassin's stomach. With a heart groan, she collapsed on herself, admitting defeat.

"Now tell me," Ko'shrai continued his earlier questioning, "what were you planning to do then?"

"We were..." was all the lady could say before they heard a sickening crack below them. Apparently one of the munitions crates contained a new type of handheld bomb. With these exploding, their combined shrapnel quickly destabilized the tall spire, causing it to break under its own weight. As the giant trunk fell, Ko'shrai knew that the only way he could get the answers he needed, as well as to survive, was to shield his opponent to the best of his ability. He quickly jumped upon her, embracing her so she wouldn't try to break free, and felt a brief moment of weightlessness before the airship crashed into a mountian, like a dragon roaring its final breath away, spewing flames everywhere.

Finally, silence was born from the ensuing chaos. But where was Ko'shrai, and who was this mysterious kidnapper-turned assassin? All these questions lingering throughout his mind merely brought upon his eventual sleep a lot sooner than he anticipated, and soon Ko'shrai lost himself upon the first greeting stars of the night, still holding on to her.


End file.
